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In 1993 Seoul, an American CIA agent, embedded in South Korea as an English teacher, finds his world turned upside down when he uncovers a web of deception that reveals he’s been a double agent all along.

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Seoul Identity (2025)

Seoul Identity

Feature Film | Thriller, Spy, Drama | 1h 40min


Storyline

In 1993 Seoul, Jake Cooper leads a double life: beloved English teacher by day, CIA operative by night. When his cover is blown during a violent confrontation at his language school, Jake discovers a terrifying truth—he's been working for the wrong side all along.

Recruited by a man he believed to be CIA, Jake spent two years running missions he thought served his country. But the intelligence he gathered went north. The packages he delivered exposed South Korean agents. Three are already dead.

With his identity shattered and both sides hunting him, Jake must decide who he really is—and who he wants to become. His only ally is Sung-ho, an old friend with a dangerous past, who believes the man beneath all the masks is still worth saving.

A twisting spy thriller about loyalty, deception, and the terrifying question: what happens when everything you believed about yourself turns out to be a lie?


Plot Summary

Jake Cooper, a 23-year-old American teaching English in Seoul, secretly works as a CIA operative—or so he believes. When thugs threaten his language school, Jake's combat training is exposed, catching the attention of the mysterious Mr. Kim.

As Jake investigates discrepancies in his missions, he uncovers evidence that his "CIA handler" doesn't exist. The drops, the coded messages, the intelligence he gathered—all routed through a North Korean network run by Kim. Jake isn't a double agent who got caught. He was never on America's side to begin with.

Hunted by Kim's operatives and questioning everything he thought he knew, Jake turns to Sung-ho, a Korean friend whose sister Jake once saved. Together they navigate Seoul's underworld, gathering proof of Kim's operation while staying one step ahead of the kill teams.

In a final confrontation, Jake must choose: disappear into a new life, or walk into the US Embassy and face the consequences of missions he never meant to complete. He chooses truth—the first real choice he's ever made.


Cast

Character Description
Jake Cooper American, 23. English teacher and unwitting North Korean asset. Charming, capable, and utterly betrayed by his own life.
Sung-ho Korean, 40s. Jake's loyal friend with a checkered past. Pragmatic, protective, dark sense of humor.
Mr. Kim Korean, 50s. The man who recruited Jake. Cold, calculating, serves the highest bidder—currently Pyongyang.
Mr. Han Korean, 50s. Mysterious informant who first reveals the truth. Serves only the truth itself.
Agent Park Korean, 30s. Pursuer who delivers Jake's devastating revelation.
Mrs. Park Korean, 50s. Jake's devoted student at the language school.
Mr. Choi Korean, 60s. Director of the language school.

Crew

Role Name
Written by Scott Graham
Based on Original screenplay
Production J. Scott Graham

Technical Specs

Specification Details
Runtime ~110 minutes
Pages ~110 (93 scenes)
Aspect Ratio 2.39:1 (Scope)
Color Color
Language English, Korean (한국어)
Setting Seoul (서울), South Korea, 1993

Soundtrack

Listen on Suno

Original score featuring cinematic K-pop fusion—blending Korean traditional instruments with modern electronic production.

# Track Duration
1 Shadow Hunter 2:57
2 Shadows of Seoul 1:46
3 Shadow Lies 3:13
4 Chasing Fate 1:50
5 Double Agent 2:10
6 Neon Alley (Pt. 2) 1:19
7 Shadows of Seoul (Pt. 2) 3:22
8 Truth Unveiled 2:08
9 Chasing Fate (Pt. 2) 1:49
10 Seoul Identity (Title Track) 3:22
11 Seoul Identity Main Theme 2:00
12 Truth Unveiled (Pt. 2) 1:21

Total Runtime: ~27 minutes

Music created with Suno AI


Language & Dialogue

This screenplay uses bilingual formatting for Korean dialogue, presenting both Hangul and English translation for authenticity and production readiness.

Format Example

SUNG-HO
(in Korean; subtitled)
야! 이 미친 자식아.
*Ya! You crazy bastard.*

Why Bilingual?

  • Accuracy: Romanization varies (성호 vs Sung-ho/Seong-ho); Hangul is exact
  • Production: Korean-speaking actors have authentic dialogue
  • Cultural respect: Honors the Korean language and setting
  • Casting: Native speakers can evaluate dialogue quality

Key Korean Terms

Korean Romanization Meaning
hyung Older brother (informal, male to male)
아이고 aigoo Exclamation (surprise, frustration)
jeong Deep emotional bond
소주 soju Korean distilled liquor

Genres

  • Spy Thriller
  • Drama
  • Political Thriller
  • Identity Crisis

Themes

  • Identity: Who are we when everything we believe about ourselves is false?
  • Loyalty: The difference between blind obedience and chosen allegiance
  • Deception: Layers of lies in the intelligence world
  • Redemption: Can we become someone new after being used as a weapon?
  • Friendship: The bonds that survive betrayal

Tagline

"The most dangerous lie is the one you tell yourself."


Keywords

Cold War Seoul 1993 CIA North Korea double agent false identity spy thriller betrayal language teacher cover blown KCIA intelligence friendship redemption


Did You Know?

Trivia

  • The story is set in 1993, during a period of heightened tension on the Korean peninsula
  • Jake's teaching scenes were written to establish genuine warmth before the spy world intrudes
  • The "Songbird" code name carries ironic weight—a songbird sings, but Jake's voice was never his own
  • Sung-ho's character was inspired by the Korean concept of jeong—deep emotional bonds that transcend circumstance

Goofs

  • Please report any continuity errors

Quotes

Mr. Han: "The right question is not 'who am I working for.' The right question is 'who do I want to be?'"

Jake: "You gave me a conscience so I'd seem human. But conscience is conscience. It doesn't come with an off switch."

Mr. Kim: "So you're choosing a cell over a life." Jake: "I'm choosing to find out."

Jake (to Mr. Kim): "You made a man who wanted to do the right thing. And now he is. That's your legacy."

Sung-ho: "Go. Be who you want to be."

Jake (V.O.): "For the first time in two years - maybe my whole life - I know exactly who I am."


Connections

References

  • Classic spy thrillers: Three Days of the Condor, The Spy Who Came in from the Cold
  • Identity crisis narratives: The Bourne Identity, A Most Wanted Man
  • Korean cinema influence: Joint Security Area, The Berlin File

Box Office

In Development


Awards

Not yet released


User Reviews

Coming soon


More Like This

  • The Bourne Identity (2002)
  • Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy (2011)
  • A Most Wanted Man (2014)
  • The Berlin File (2013)
  • Bridge of Spies (2015)

Contributing

This project uses a lightweight SAFe-style workflow for both human collaborators and AI agents.

Branch Types

Type Use Case
scene/{slug} Single scene work
revision/{type} Full-script passes
character/{name} Character-focused work
structure/{change} Reorganization
fix/{issue} Targeted fixes

Quick Start

# Create a working branch
git checkout -b scene/your-scene-name

# Make changes, then commit
git commit -m "scene(act1): add your scene description"

# Create PR when ready

See docs/WORKFLOW.md for complete workflow documentation.


Copyright

(c) 2025 J. Scott Graham. All rights reserved.


This README follows IMDb formatting conventions for feature film presentation.

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In 1993 Seoul, an American CIA agent, embedded in South Korea as an English teacher, finds his world turned upside down when he uncovers a web of deception that reveals he’s been a double agent all along.

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